Is Medical Insurance Necessary For The Traveler?
You may be tempted to go traveling without insurance if you haven’t been to a doctor for ages and are reasonably healthy. My advice is: don’t do it. If you did have some kind of major accident, you could be in big trouble without insurance.
Chances are you will never need the insurance. Chances are you’ll travel around and be just fine. But what if? what if something happens and you end up needing major surgery or an air ambulance? If you don’t have insurance, you could still be paying for that medical care when you are 80 years old.
There are many insurance companies who provide travel insurance. Be sure to read the fine print to see what is and is not covered on your policy. There are typically a variety of plans to meet your needs – some will cover care in certain countries but not others, they come with varying amounts of deductible, etc.
We looked around quite a bit for an insurance plan and finally ended up with a high-deductible plan from IMG. We were unable to get the policy until the date we planned to leave the USA and have to be out of the country for at least six months every year. We have a high deductible, but will be covered when we go back home for a visit.
We look at the insurance as exactly that – insurance. We don’t use it on a regular basis – we’ve opted for the $5000 deductible so have never had the opportunity to use it. All the small stuff we’ll pay for out of our own pocket – but in most parts of the world health care is quite reasonably priced. It would take a major accident to rack up a bill of more than $5000.
It’s tempting to forego the insurance when medical costs are so low in other countries. However, don’t dismiss the possibility of some fluke accident which leads to you being evacuated in an air ambulance. That plane could cost up to $100,000! Is it really worth not getting insurance when you could be facing
Traveling long term is Nancy Sathre-Vogel’s passion. She has traveled in dozens of countries and has experienced her share of travel health concerns.
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